This page began as a usenet article that I posted to rec.food.veg.cooking.
The problem I've had with many home-made vegan pates/spreads in the past is that so many of them seem to rely on breadcrumbs to provide texture; and that's a bit too much bread (for me) when you consider that it'll be going in sandwiches.
So I've been trying rice-based spreads instead - the last one I made has fried aubergine (eggplant), onion and red (bell) pepper mixed with fresh coriander (cilantro), a bit of rice vinegar, some fresh garlic, soy sauce, tahini and cooked white rice and then all whizzed to a puree in the blender (but retaining a bit of texture). I could spread it nice and thickly on my sandwiches without it being too stodgy; it had plenty of flavour, and it had veg in it so I didn't need to bother with salad.